Old English hof "hoof," from Proto-Germanic *hofaz (cognates: Old Saxon, Old Frisian hof, Old Norse hofr, Danish hov, Dutch hoef, German Huf "hof"), from PIE *kop- "to beat, strike" (cognates: Sanskrit saphah "hoof"). For spelling, see hood (n.1).
hoof (v.)
"to walk" (hoof it), first attested 1640s, from hoof (n.); slang meaning "to dance" is 1920, American English (implied in hoofer). Related: Hoofed; hoofing.